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EgyptAir has confirmed that it no longer flies monkeys from Africa and Asia for animal testing anywhere in the world.
The news comes after PETA engaged in a three-month campaign designed to inform company executives and employees about the cruelty they were complicit with.
The UK’s Action for Primates, Stop Carmales in Spain, and France’s One Voice all supported PETA with localized campaigns.
EgyptAir follows in the footsteps of Air France, which announced in July that it would not be renewing its monkey transportation contracts.
AirBridgeCargo, Emirates, US Airways, Virgin Atlantic, and more than 100 other airlines have made similar pledges.
The campaign to end cruelty
Global PETA entities came together to implore EgyptAir to rethink its monkey transportation policy, after securing victory with Air France.
Protests were held in multiple international airports, including John F. Kennedy (JFK) in New York. More than 100,000 supporters also sent emails to the airline, demanding the end of animal flights. Meanwhile, PETA Asia sent t-shirts and mugs to company executives, asking them to step in.
The airline became a target for campaigners after insiders alerted the animal rights organization to a shipment of 720 macaque monkeys, who were flown from Cambodia to JFK in April.
Official records show that 5,000 monkeys have been transported into the US by EgyptAir since March.
“EgyptAir’s decision will prevent thousands of monkeys from being ripped from their families, shoved into tiny boxes, and shipped around the globe to endure misery and death in laboratories,” PETA vice president Dr. Alka Chandna said in a statement.
“Any other airline considering getting into this trade should think again—PETA is watching.”
Spain’s Wamos Air remains the only major airline to not address its flying of monkeys and primates to testing laboratories.
PETA has previously named the airline as abstaining from policy reform, signaling the potential for a future targeted campaign.
No end in sight for monkey testing
The monkey wildlife trade is rife with illegal activity, violence, and disease.
However, there is no sign of it slowing down, due to the demand for animals to test on, particularly in the US. This, despite the National Institutes of Health and the US Food and Drug Administration admission that 95 percent of all new drugs that test as safe in animals are not suitable for humans.
Last year it was reported that more than $13 million of taxpayer money had been invested in monkey experiments since 2018. To keep up with the demand for animals, the NIH was found to have initiated a captive breeding program on Morgan Island.
